WTO backs Canada in wheat dispute with United StatesLast Updated Tue, 10 Feb 2004 18:47:46
WINNIPEG - The Canadian Wheat Board said Tuesday that a World Trade Organization (WTO) dispute settlement panel has cleared it of American accusations of unfair trade practices.
The CWB said a trade panel ruling found the board conducts its business in compliance with international trade laws.
"The panel found that because the CWB is controlled by the farmers whose grain it markets rather than by the government of Canada, its incentive is to get the best return it can for that grain," the wheat board said.
U.S. producers have long charged that the CWB undercuts prices and indirectly subsidizes Canadian farmers.
"This is a major victory for western Canadian farmers," Ken Ritter, a Saskatchewan farmer and chair of the CWB's board of directors, said.
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